They're Applauding Us
by BloodyEccentrik
Summary: Dean has just won custody of his son and moves him back to his hometown of Lawrence to be around his family and ends up meeting author Castiel Novak.
1. Chapter 1

Title: They're Applauding Us  
Author: BloodyEccentrik  
Pairing: Dean/Castiel, Sam/Jo, Gabriel, Anna, Bobby, Michael  
Rating: PG-13  
Word Count: 1014  
Spoilers: Not a one. Totally AU.  
Summary: Dean has just won custody of his son and moves him back to his hometown of Lawrence to be around his family and ends up meeting author Castiel Novak. (Wow, I'm sucky at summaries…awkward)

A/N: First fanfic please forgive me.

Part I

"Daddy, can I gets some fruit leather? _Please?_"

Dean grimaced at his son, Jesse's, desire for the organic dried fruit that sat in baskets arranged around the kiosks of organic fruit in the produce section of the small local market a few blocks from their home. He blamed Sam completely for this grim development in his child's growth.

"Sure, dude, why not," Dean said, biting back a grieved sigh, offering his five year old an indulgent smile instead.

Dean watched as his son pondered the selection before he finally decided on the apple (a preference that Dean could get behind considering his it was the main ingredient in his favorite pie), and wondered why he listened to his lame brother anyway.

"_Dean, you should consider going to the market over on Cloverleaf, they really do have the best selection of organic meats and produce."_

_Dean shot his little brother a disgusted look._

"_Seriously, Dean, do you know how many hormones that they feed the chickens to get them all plump and pretty? Have you ever wondered what effect those types of hormones might have on a growing child?"_

_The disgust on Dean's face morphed into panic as he considered that at least giving organic food a try wouldn't actually kill him…_

Dean was pulled from his memory at the sound of Jesse's voice.

"Dude, you're weird!"

Dean was momentarily confused at the statement until he saw the man standing beside the display of citrus fruit, shooting his son a bemused look.

"Jesse!"

Jesse whipped his head around to his father, shock at hearing the censure in his father's voice.

"What?"

The man also looked up at Dean's voice and Dean was struck at the vivid blue of the man's eyes, and tried not to stutter at their intensity.

"Jesse, that is rude. Please apologize now."

Jesse crossed his arms across his chest, his face composed into a familiar composition of stubbornness.

"I din mean it bad, Daddy! He was talkin' to the fruits in a funny voice and I neber heard that before!"

Dean's gaze flicked over to the man, curious about his son's statement but not about to let his son get away with bad behavior.

"Jesse…"

Hearing the warning in his father's voice, Jesse turned to the stranger sullenly.

"Sorry."

The other man had been watching father and son and seemed slightly startled to hear the little boys reluctant apology.

"Um…I forgive you," the man said graciously, "and just to clarify, I wasn't actually talking to the fruit, I was practicing my Russian and I understand how that may have been considered…unusual."

Dean raised an eyebrow.

"Russian, huh? You planning a trip there?"

"No. Why?"

Dean was confused.

"I just assumed that since you were practicing your Russian…."

"Oh," the other man said, "I apologize, my sister tells me that I can be rather obtuse…"

_Obtuse?_

The awkward level was suddenly in the red.

"So, ok then, we should let you get back to your shopping. Come on, Jesse."

Dean waited for Jesse to drop the dried fruit in the basket before turning away from the other man, mentally berating himself for his inability to communicate with the attractive guy. When had he lost his skills? There used to be a time when he had to beat them off with a stick. Ok, maybe not so much but still, he never used to have a problem attracting men. Of course, Jesse wasn't exactly wrong, the other man was a tad peculiar.

"Wait!"

Dean turned back to the dark haired man thinking that maybe he hadn't lost it after all.

"Do you know where the Hungarian paprika is located?"

Dean started at him blankly.

"I mean, I don't usually come to this market, but my car broke down and this place was in walking distance and I really need to restock my supply of Hungarian paprika and I have not been able to locate it. The paprika I mean, not the market, because obviously I found the market."

Dean watched, amazed, as the man babbled and wondered how the faint pink that was now staining his stubbled cheeks managed to be the exact shade as his full lips. The gentle tugging at the hem of his grey t-shirt brought him out of his intense study of the man, realizing that there had been several seconds of silence as the other man had stopped talking.

Dean cleared his throat.

"Actually, this is our first time here too. I usually just go the grocery on main but since I don't want my son to grow a third testicle from eating weird chicken hormones, I thought I would try organic."

Dean almost cringed at his own version of insanity but stopped himself just in time.

"So other then telling you that we passed the spices four aisles back, I can't really offer more help than that, however," he said, reaching into his wallet for a business card and handing it over, "I run Singer's Auto and if you bring your car in, I can take a look at your problem."

"Dean Winchester," the man read from the card. "Thank you, I will certainly do that. I'm Castiel, by the way, Castiel Novak."

Castiel had abandoned his perusal of the business card, and directed that laser sharp gaze back at Dean as he introduced himself.

The hem tugging had resumed and when Dean looked down at his son, he saw the warning signs of the little boys temper.

"I'm hungry," the little boy whined.

Rolling his eyes, Dean returned his attention back to Castiel, flashing his most charming smile full of blinding white teeth.

"Bring your car in and good lucking finding your Swedish pepper."

"Er, Hungarian paprika and thank you again."

Dean quickly steered both his child and his grocery cart out of the produce section and towards the checkout counters, hoping they could make it back home before Jesse devolved into one of his major tantrums.

As they left the store, Jesse turned to his father, his nose scrunched in puzzlement.

"Daddy? Whas a testicle?"


	2. Chapter 2

They're Applauding Us (Part 2/?)

Dean parked the Impala in back of the garage, relieved to see that the other two mechanics along with the receptionist, Jo, had already arrived and opened the garage despite his late arrival. It wasn't typical behavior from him, but this morning there had been no possible way he could have made it to work any earlier, not after the night he and Jesse had had.

Looking in the rearview mirror, he saw that his son was still asleep in his car seat. The little boy had fallen asleep from the moment the seat belt had clicked in place, clearly exhausted from a long night of sleep interrupted with nightmares. It had begun as soon as Jesse's mother had disappeared almost a year ago and showed no signs of lessening and had in fact seemed to increase in the past two months since they had moved back to Lawrence.

Sighing heavily, Dean pushed the driver's door open and exited the vehicle, moving to the back of the car to extricate his son from the car seat.

"Come on, big guy," Dean whispered softly, as he undid the belt and hefted his son in his arms. "Wow, what have you been eating, you weight a ton!"

"Mnfs.."

"What was that?" Dean asked as he walked to the back door.

Jesse lifted his head from where it had been buried in Dean's neck.

"Meany!" he grumbled sleepily as he returned his head to its previous location.

Dean smiled indulgently, waving to Jo as he walked to the back office and deposited Jesse on the couch, laying his head gently on one of the throw pillows.

"I've gotta get to work, buddy, but if you need anything, Jo's just outside the door. Why don't you try and sleep a little."

Jesse's nodded his head and snuggled into the worn couch as Dean walked outside the office to the counter.

"Hey, Jo," Dean said, flashing a small smile.

"Hey, handsome, rough night?"

"The nightmares seem to be getting worse, Jo. I had hoped that being here, surrounded by family would help."

Jo reached out to fold Dean in her arms.

"Dean, you were right to bring him home. He needs us, but most of all _you _need this. You need to have people to lean on and that's what we're here for, to help you be strong for your son. Sam and me and my folks, we want to be there for you both."

Dean had heard a similar sentiment from Sam but having it reiterated by Jo, who had once been a tow headed little tomboy following Sammy all over town, made something clench in his chest, a feeling he now chose not to analyze for fear of losing what little control he had on his emotions.

Dean pulled away from the woman, giving her a brief kiss on the forehead and cleared his throat.

"Anything interesting on tap for today?"

Jo hid a smile and reached over to pick up some papers on the counter.

"That part came in for the Mercedes so Tim has already started on that. There's a couple of cars that need a break change and someone named Castiel Novak had his Volvo towed in about five minutes before you got here."

At the sound of Castiel's name, Dean perked up a bit.

"Great. I'll be in the bay working out whatever's going on with the Volvo. Thanks again for watching Jesse this morning. Becky should be here after her appointment in a few hours and I've packed snacks and juice in his backpack next to the couch in case he gets hungry."

Jo waved Dean off deftly filing paperwork and picking up the phone as it started ringing.

It took Dean all of five minutes to diagnose Castiel's car with a busted alternator, another five minutes to have Jo find out if an appropriate part was available in the area followed by an additional hour and a half to switch out the old part with the new.

After determining that the procedure was a success, Dean popped his head back into the lobby to instruct Jo that she could call the client, only to find said client already sitting in the waiting room. That wasn't exactly a surprise, considering that Jo had probably called him earlier with a time and price estimate. No the surprising part was seeing his son kneeling next to Castiel, laughing at something on the man's laptop. It wasn't often that Dean heard his son laugh and he felt the tightness in his chest return.

Dean turned to see Jo standing at the desk smirking at him and offering a discreetly mouthed _'hot', _causing him to feel a brief attack of shyness.

"Um, hey, Castiel," Dean greeted, hoping that the flare of heat on the tips of his ear didn't actually mean that they were pink. "Hope you haven't been waiting long."

Castiel's head popped up at the same time as Jesse's when Dean spoke smiling slightly at Jesse's gleeful exclamation of "Daddy!"

"Hello, Dean. And no, the wait is entirely my fault; I did not know how long it would take me to get here by way of the public transit system resulting in my early arrival."

"Me 'n Cas has been playin' games on his puter!" Jesse offered merrily pointing at the laptop in question. "It's fun!"

"Oh yeah?" Dean said, hoping that Jesse hadn't been making a pest of himself, looking over to Jo who gave a noncommittal shrug.

"I hope that was okay, Dean, it's a children's website that my niece visits, and I did not let him use the laptop unsupervised."

Dean realized that the other man was looking a little nervous and he quickly cleared up the misunderstanding in the making.

"Sure, it's completely okay, I just don't want you to feel like you gotta keep Jesse entertained."

Castiel canted his head to the side, snaring Dean with his hypnotic blue eyes.

"It was actually Jesse keeping me entertained," he responded after a few seconds.

Dean nodded, his lips twitching.

"Well we pride ourselves on full service. Come on back and I'll go over what I did on your car."

Castiel was shut down his computer and promising a pouting five year old that he would give his father the web address to the game site, when the front door burst open and a petite bundle of energy barreled inside.

"Jesse! Let's go it's time to go harass the pretzel vendor in the park!"

"K, Becky!" Jesse's pout was quickly wiped away as he bound over to the office to collect his backpack.

Becky waved excitedly to Dean, casting a curious gaze to Castiel who had come to stand next to him.

"Sorry again for being late, I tried to reschedule my appointment but my gynecologist is extremely popular and as it is I have to-OHMYGOD! You're CASTIEL NOVAK!"

Dean cringed at the rising decibel level of Becky's screeching and shot Jo a panicked look only to find Jo staring at Castiel.

"_The_ Castiel Novak?" Jo breathed.

"Daddy, whas goin' on?" Jesse asked, having returned from the office, carrying his backpack.

"Dunno, little man," Dean said slowly, noticing as he looked over at Castiel that the other man looked like he'd just caught his foot in a bear trap.

"Ok, enough. Becky, you take Jesse to the park; Jo, you do…whatever. Cas, you follow me to the garage and we'll discuss your car."

"But, Dean-" the two women whined in unison.

"No buts. Jesse, I'll see you at home in a few hours. Love you," Dean said quickly, and held the door open to the garage, allowing Castiel to escape.

"Bye, Dad!" Dean heard before the door closed behind him and turning to Castiel, whose ridiculously sexy eyes were still glazed with panic.

Wanting to ask him what that had been all about but knowing it would likely send the other man running out screaming, Dean decided to get down to business.

"I was able to replace your alternator without problems and tested the battery to make sure it wasn't drained which it wasn't. I also tightened a couple of belts and changed your oil. You're safe, practical car should now be running smoothly."

Dean looked away from the car to find those intense eyes studying his face and found himself, for the second time in ten minutes, fighting the urge to blush. Because he has control over that, of course he does.

"Thank you, Dean, I really appreciate you doing such a thorough job on my 'safe, practical' vehicle."

Dean cringed at hearing his own words used, thinking he should try and be a little more circumspect in his car bias.

"I suppose I should go back in there, and pay my bill…" Castiel continued, casting a look in the direction of the window where the two fangirls still stood staring at him.

"Jesus Christ," Dean muttered, determined to give both of his employees a stern talking to about professionalism. "Sorry about whatever that is, man. How about I just send you the bill in the mail? That way you can just get in your car and never have to return to this creeper joint."

Castiel offered Dean a relieved smile. "Yes thank you."

Dean wanted to believe that he wasn't flattered at the slightly reverent tone in Castiel's voice, he really did.

"Ur, yeah, ok. Here's your keys and uh, yeah."

_Eloquence_,_ thy name is Dean._

Dean watched the slender, almost delicate fingers take the Volvo keys from him and tried to collect himself enough to ask the man out to dinner, seeing the window of opportunity closing as Castiel buckled his seat belt and shut the car door.

Dean was about to wrap his knuckles on the window when said window was suddenly opened.

"Dean, I would like to invite Jesse over tonight for a play date with my niece Claire. My sister Anna and her husband are going on a 'date night' and I am watching Claire for them. She is six years old and I thought it might be nice for her to spend some time with a child around her own age. Claire has requested corndogs and tater tots for dinner."

Dean smirked at Castiel's clear disgust at the idea of making corndogs for dinner and found himself nodding.

"Actually I think that Jesse would really enjoy that. We've only been here for a couple of months and since he doesn't start kindergarten until next month, he hasn't really had a chance to meet other kids and as you may have noticed, he's mostly surrounded by loony adults."

"Good," Castiel said, blue eyes sparkling. "Is six o'clock a reasonable time?"

"Sounds good. I'll get your address from the billing slip."

With a final wave, Castiel drove his car out of the garage, and if anyone said Dean Winchester watched as the silver car disappeared down the street with a stupid grin on his face, he would punch them in the snot locker.

A/N: This is not beta'd so super sorry for any errors. And thanks for the reviews! I really appreciate readers taking time to give me feedback!


	3. Chapter 3

They're Applauding Us (3/?)

Dean couldn't be positive but it seemed as if Sam was standing by the door waiting to pounce when he arrived home with only an hour to get himself and his kid ready for their-um _Jesse's_ play date with Castiel's niece.

"_Dean_, why didn't you tell me that you knew Castiel Novak? That is like _huge!_"

"Shut up, Sammy," Dean replied, hanging his jacket on the hook by the door and walking towards the stairs, the Sasquatch hot on his heels.

"_And_ you are going over to his house tonight. Seriously, how do you do it? You've been back home for a total of two fucking months, and you've already got a date with the most famous Lawrence resident since-well no one."

"Not a date, Sammy," Dean bit out.

"Daddy, what took you so long, we gotta go to Cas' house!"

Dean stopped at the foot of the stairs, Sam behind him, Jesse at the top of the stairs, and sighed heavily.

"Jesse, we have time, we won't be late. Please go gather some toys to take over with you. And Sammy, _shut up._"

"But Dean-"

Dean turned to Sam and patted him on the shoulder.

"Please, Sam, I'm freaking out a little bit here, and I could really use some space. Can we have this discussion at a time when I'm not completely exhausted and wondering what the fuck I was thinking agreeing to a play date between my son and the niece of a man I met in a grocery store?" _A man who also happens to have the most amazing fucking eyes I've ever seen, _Dean thought to himself.

Dean watched as Sam's face began to morph into an expression that should only be used when dealing with injured animals and shook his head, holding out a hand to prevent what he knew to be an impending hug from his giant brother.

"Jesus fuck, Sammy, I kinda hate you right now."

Sam nodded and Dean supposed it wouldn't be awesome of him to punch the stupid grin off his brother's face in his own house.

"We will have plenty of time to discuss this tomorrow while helping Bobby and Ellen tomorrow," Sam said, "so hurry and get ready or you'll be late."

Dean had a few more choice words to offer his brother but decided he didn't have the time to give Sam the shit he deserved for being such an Oprah. Besides, it wasn't like Sam hadn't been all for talking about feelings from the moment he could string a sentence together, so it seemed unlikely that it would be possible to beat the girl out of him at this point.

After showering and changing in record time, Dean walked across the hall to Jesse's room to find his son sitting on the floor next to his overstuffed backpack and tears about to fall from his green eyes. The familiar helplessness that came whenever his son was sad settled heavily on Dean's shoulders.

"What's going on, big guy," Dean asked softly as he sat on the floor in front of his son.

Jesse just shook his head, looking down at the tightly gripped hands resting on his lap. It was at times like these that Dean wished his kid was a little less like him and could feel comfortable talking about his feelings.

"I know it's hard but you'll feel better if you tell me," Dean coaxed gently.

Jesse sighed and lifted his watery eyes up to look at his father.

"She's not gonna like me," he whispered, small lips trembling.

"What makes you say that, son?"

"I dunno what toys she'd like! And if I bring the wong ones she'll think I'm stupid." Jesse sniffed.

Dean reached out and gently wiped a tear from Jesse's round cheek.

"Remember when we moved here and you told me you were scared? I told you about how me and Uncle Sam moved around a lot when we were little. Well we had to make new friends every time we went to a new town and you know what?"

Jesse had moved into Dean's lap as he talked his little body tense but the threat of tears seemed to have been abated.

"Wha, Daddy?"

"We were scared too, worried that no one would want to be friends with the new kids but my dad, your Grampa John, told us to just be ourselves. I, of course didn't believe him but he was right."

"So every kid you met wanted to be your friend?" Jesse asked skeptically.

Dean chuckled, "Not exactly but I was always able to make new friends more often than not."

Jesse considered this, "Well wha if this kid don't like me? Will you be mad? Will Cas hate me too?"

Not for the first time, Dean cursed Jesse's mother, knowing that her actions had contributed to Jesse's chronic anxiety.

"Jesse, how about we give this a try okay? You and me are both going to find out tonight if we are able to make new friends and I promise you that if you aren't having fun or if you just want to have ice cream with Aunt Jo, we'll come straight home, k?"

Jesse nodded slowly and wrapped his arms around Dean's neck, to which Dean responded by holding the boy fiercely.

"Hey, is this a boy's only party or can any Aunt Jo join in the fun?"

"Jo!" Jess cried out, jumping off Dean's lap and running to Jo, who stood leaning against the door jam.

Jo dropped to her knees and caught the five year old in her arms for a quick hug before pulling back and holding him at arm's length.

"Let me have a look at you know. Hmm, your grey Stanford hoodie, sweet cowboy boots, clean jeans and artfully messed up hair…well, I am giving you the Aunt Jo seal of approval."

Jesse giggled, "Wha about Daddy, Jo? You 'prove of him?"

Jo stood up and swept a critical gaze over Dean, and held out her hand.

"What?" Dean asked.

"Hand, please," Jo asked, a grin teasing the corner of her mouth.

Dean looked over to see Jesse standing to the side of Jo, arms crossed. "Daddy…"

"Fine," Dean said, laying a calloused hand on top of Jo's smooth palm.

Jo made a show of inspecting Dean's hand. "Wow, I barely see any grease at all. I would pass you for that alone but considering you are wearing a t-shirt in the flattering color of green that matches your sexy eyes, I'm actually going to give you a score of seven on a scale of one to ten."

Dean rolled his eyes, "Jeez thanks, Jo."

"Anytime. Now, if I'm not mistaken, and I rarely am, you boys need to get going."

Jesse picked up his backpack, and grabbed Dean's hand pulling him down the stairs, Jo following closely behind.

"Hey, wait!" she called out, walking towards the kitchen, "I picked up some cookies for you guys to take over. It's only polite to bring a gift."

Jo returned shortly, pressing a bag of fresh cookies into Dean's hand.

"Thanks, Jo," Dean said, feeling a little overwhelmed, wondering if Jesse's anxiety was contagious.

"You two have fun, and Jesse, don't forget to miss me!"

Dean watched Jesse and Jo hug one more time, and turned to Sam who was standing with the door open, a dorky smile on his face.

"If you hadn't asked her to marry you, Jesse and me would have disowned you," Dean said, grabbing a brown hoodie off the coat rack as he walked past Sam.

Sam chuckled and waved them off, closing the door behind the two Winchester men walking towards Dean's mint condition Chevy.


	4. Chapter 4

Title: They're Applauding Us  
Author: BloodyEccentrik  
Pairing: Dean/Castiel, Sam/Jo, Anna, Bobby, Michael  
Word Count: 1539  
Spoilers: Not a one. Totally AU.

**Disclaimer: I absolutely failed putting one of these on any of my previous submissions and while I think it should be perfectly obvious that I am getting nothing by way of monetary gain from this story or any others I may write, I understand the need. That being said, no infringement intended, these characters all belong to CW, Kripke and anyone else who has a vested interest in Supernatural.**

_**A/N: First of all, as usual this is so not beta'd so yeah, sorry for that. Second, someone asked if I miss stated that Dean had won custody in the summary because I had put in the story that Jesse's mother disappeared (good catch and sorry for the confusion). But these things are both true and it will all be clarified as the story continues. Third, the "Play-Date" was split in half due to the fact that I couldn't seem to cut anything out of it so I will have Part 4 B up soon. Lastly, I absolutely adore all of you who took the time to review and add me to alerts etc. It makes me feel happy which makes me want to make you happy and therefore helps motivate me to keep writing. Kisses and Squishes to all of you**_**!**

**Part 4 A**

Dean pulled up to an unassuming two story grey house with a wraparound porch and a bright blue door and turned off the engine.

"We're here, Jesse," Dean stated unnecessarily, to which Jesse responded with a look that could only be interpreted as 'duh'.

Walking up to the door, Dean was hard pressed to figure out who was more nervous, he or Jesse, which really pissed him off because Dean Winchester didn't get nervous not for any reason yet he couldn't deny that Castiel made him feel things he'd never experienced before.

The blue door was flung open just as they hit the first step, revealing a little girl with curly blonde pigtails was standing in the doorway rocking excitedly on the balls of her feet and grinning madly.

"Uncle! The kid's here!"

The child could only be Claire, Castiel's niece.

"Hi!" she squealed as they finally arrived at the front door. "I'm Claire and you're Jesse. Let's go in the backyard I built us a fort. I wanna play Angels and Demons, you can be an angel or a demon or even a human but if you wanna be a human you won't have any superpowers ok? _And _Uncle is making corndogs and tater tots for dinner, they are my favorite but Uncle hates them, cuz he's a grown up and they don't like good food. Come on."

Dean and Jesse had stood on the porch feeling slightly overwhelmed by the little girl's breathless relay of information, and before they could respond, Castiel hurried up behind Claire.

"Claire, would you please refrain from answering the door for potential evil-doers?" He asked calmly.

"But I knew it was the kid, I saw them from the window! No evil doins' here, Uncle," she assured her Uncle.

"Uh-huh. Ok then, how about you call him Jesse instead of 'kid' say hello to Mr. Winchester and go play?"

"Hello, Mr. Winchester, I'm happy to meet you and your ki-um, Jesse!" she said with a beatific smile before reaching her hand out to Jesse her actions making it clear that she expected the other child to take hold.

Jesse looked up at Dean who nudged him gently in the shoulder, "It's ok, little man. Angels and Demons sounds like a fun game."

"Oh it is! Uncle usually plays an angel but since Jesse's here, we can have a No Big People sign on the fort!"

Jesse took the other child's hand and let her pull him through the house, disappearing, presumable to the backyard.

"Please come in, Dean."

Dean started a little, having forgotten during the little girl's excitement that he was still standing on the front porch.

"Thanks, man, uh your niece is something else," Dean chuckled softly entering into Castiel's home.

Castiel closed the door behind him, a chagrinned smirk on his lips. "Yes, she is rather…loquacious. She gets if from her father."

An awkward silence fell between them and Dean searched his suddenly blank mind for something to say.

"Pork?" Castiel asked suddenly.

"Excuse me?"

"Do you like pork? I was planning on barbequing pork ribs but if you would rather, there will be plenty of corndogs."

Understanding dawned in Dean's sluggish brain.

"Oh yeah, ribs sound good. Don't get me wrong, sometimes a situation calls for a corndog but when faced with the possibility of ribs there is no way I would turn that down."

Dean forced himself no to cringe at the complete and utter lameness of everything he had said and done since arriving at the Novak home.

"How about a drink?"

"Sounds good."

Castiel began walking in the same direction that the kids disappeared in, motioning for Dean to follow him.

As they walked through the house Dean noticed how warm and comfortable the interior of the house felt. Dean saw overstuffed mahogany colored leather couches with an ugly afghan haphazardly tossed over the back and what looked to be a well used fireplace with pictures on the stone mantle. After walking down a short hall they arrived in a large kitchen, the smell of barbeque sauce tantalizing his appetite.

Castiel opened his fridge and leaned in, giving Dean the opportunity to admire the man's ass covered in worn jeans. And what an ass it was.

"Beer? Wine? Kool-Aid?" Castiel asked popping his head up over the refrigerator door, holding a beer and pitcher of blue liquid, expression bland but Dean was fairly certain he had just gotten busted for ogling his host.

"Beer!"

Dean hoped that Castiel hadn't noticed how he practically shouted his request in a voice that was suddenly an octave higher.

Castiel nodded the small smile curling at his full lips telling Dean nothing. After taking the proffered beverage he watched Castiel reach up in the cupboard for a wine glass.

"So you're famous," Dean said suddenly.

Earlier at the garage when Becky had lost her nut and Jo had seemed a little awestruck, Dean had been curious but had pushed it aside, feeling as if asking someone else about Castiel would be inappropriate.

Castiel seemed to start as if Dean's statement had caught him off guard and as he moved to turn back to Dean his head slammed into the still open cupboard door.

"Shit!" Dean exclaimed moving around the kitchen island to get to Castiel's side.

Castiel was holding his hand to his forehead which Dean gently moved out of the way in order to assess the damage.

"Well you're going to have a goose egg and probably a hell of a headache but I think you'll be fine if you take a couple of Tylenol now. Let me know if you get dizzy or nauseous, okay?"

Castiel's blue eyes had been riveted to Dean's face as he had looked over Castiel's wound.

"Are you a doctor as well as a mechanic," Castiel asked quietly.

Dean reluctantly pulled his hands away from the side of Castiel's head, smiling at the man's question.

"Naw, just had an accident prone little brother and an absentee father."

Castiel nodded gravely, "I can relate."

Dean would have believed a statement like that was just an ordinary platitude if it had come from anyone other than the man in front of him.

"I have always been graceless and clumsy, not to mention horribly nerdy with a side of gay which resulted in the occasional beating from school mates. My sister, Anna, always had to patch up various scrapes and bruises for me."

Dean felt an irrational surge of anger at the unknown bullies from Castiel's far off past, but his temper was quickly derailed with Castiel's next question.

"Do you ever wonder why they call it a 'goose egg'?"

The word adorable was just not in Dean Winchester's vocabulary but looking at the furrowing of Castiel's brow and the slight purse of his lips, there really was no other word that would work.

"No, I really have not but I'm sure that I will now that you've mentioned it," he said, a wry grin pulling at his lips and questioning when if his child's play-date was the appropriate occasion to kiss said pursed lips.

"We can Google it later," Castiel muttered, his eyes caressing Dean's mouth making Dean clear his throat and move back a pace.

"How about you fill up your glass, grab some Tylenol and I'll go out back and check on the kids and start the grill?"

Castiel looked down at the afore mentioned wine glass hanging limply in his hand and nodded.

"And don't think I've forgotten that you owe me an answer to my question."

With a wink, Dean picked up his beer and headed out the French doors that led to the backyard, feeling relaxed and something damn close to happy for the first time in a long time.

_TBC in Part 4 B…_


	5. Chapter 5

Title: They're Applauding Us (Part 4B/?)  
Author: BloodyEccentrik  
Pairing: Dean/Castiel, Sam/Jo, Anna, Bobby, Ellen, Gabriel  
Rating: PG-13  
Word Count: 2748  
Spoilers: Not a one. Totally AU.  
Summary: Dean has just won custody of his son and moves him back to his hometown of Lawrence to be around his family and ends up meeting author Castiel Novak.  
Disclaimer: I own nothing other than my dog so hopefully no one sues me for being an obsessed fan.

A/N: Sorry for the delay and sorry for the cheese. It just refused to _not_ be cheesy but I'm hoping it's more of a puffed pastry brie with a glass of merlot rather than squeeze cheese on Chicken in a Biscuit.

As Dean exited the French doors into the backyard, he inhaled deeply of the midsummer air. It was his favorite time of year, the days long and the evenings made for children to play outside as indulgent adults drank cold beverages and barbequed with the neighbors. Castiel's backyard was full of mature shade trees, a large deck complete with patio furniture and a state of the art barbeque.

"Hey, Daddy!"

Dean turned to a pile of dismembered cardboard boxes, blankets and random toys. At closer look, Dean could see that a portion of the makeshift cardboard fort had been tagged in large childish scrawl 'No Daddy's or Uncle's!'. Dean snorted, amused to see that Claire had followed through on her earlier promise.

Jesse and Claire seemed to be locked in a stalemate near one of the large trees in the backyard, both wielding what looked to be brightly colored plastic golf clubs.

"What's up, little man?" Dean called back, impressed at the focus of both children.

"Time out!" he heard Claire call and both children relaxed.

"I'm a human, Daddy!" Jesse called breathlessly, as he ran towards Dean.

"Oh yeah, why be human if you have no super powers?"

"Weeelll," Jesse began, "I jus preten that I'm you, Daddy, yous could kill a demon easy!"

Dean felt stupidly flattered at hearing his son's words.

"Oh, an I also have my trusty sword, Sammy!" Jesse exclaimed, swinging round the bright orange plastic putter.

"Looks like you've got everything you need to be an awesome demon killer. How about you, Claire, are you a demon or an angel?"

"I am an Angel of the Lord!" she announced as she came to stand next to Jesse, raising her hands to the sky in true dramatic fashion. "But, I don't have my wings on right now because _someone_ spilled sgabetti sauce on them."

From behind him, Dean heard a long suffering sigh, and turned his head to see Castiel coming out the doors, a tray laden with beverages in his arms. Remembering the incident from earlier, he rushed over to help relieve the man of his burden, placing the tray on the glass and iron table.

"Claire, I have apologized for that too many times to count, I will not do it again especially considering that you are the one who insisted on wearing the wings during dinner."

Claire shrugged alerting the adults to the fact that she cared little for any logic or shared blame. "I just wish I had remembered to bring the ones from my house."

"You know that angels cannot always have their wings on display, especially in a world where the only humans who know of the existence of angels are hunters."

Dean and Jesse listened in fascination, Dean wondering what kind of kids game of make believe came complete with its own mythology and Jesse probably wondering when he could get back to the game.

"Oh yeah, that's right! I s'pose that will work for tonight but it's funner to have wings."

Castiel's eye twitched and Dean was certain that was Castiel's version of an eye roll. "Now that we have successfully gotten the game back on track, how about you two have a glass of angeljuice before you resume play."

"Angeljuice?" Jesse asked skeptically, looking at the tray resting on the table.

"Oh yes, it's _de_-lightful," Claire said enthusiastically, "and Uncle makes the best!"

Castiel was pouring two plastic cups with what Dean presumed was just Kool-Aid. A concerning vivid color of green that should have concerned him but he figured that there was no way Castiel would serve the children an irradiated beverage.

"Jesse, did you know that if a human drinks angeljuice they will be imbued with special powers for a short period of time?"

"Really? What kinda special powers?" Jesse breathed, wide eyes pinned to Castiel as he accepted his cup reverently.

"Oh yes but each human is different and there is no way to predict what they will be. You might be stronger or faster and if you get some of the really special angeljuice you might even be able to read minds."

Jesse looked over to a nodding Claire for confirmation before tipping his cup and draining it in a few short gulps.

"Is time out over yet?" he asked excitedly.

"Yes! Grab Sammy and let's go kill us a demon!"

Dean and Castiel watched the kids run back to the fort head bent towards each other, probably planning how to catch the evil demons.

"Er, that's a hell of a game, Cas," Dean said, finally looking back towards his host. "When I was a kid, Sam and me played cops and robbers which was really just a game of trash talk and tag."

"Yes, well…please have a seat," Castiel motioned to one of the matching patio chairs as he walked over to a large cooler near the grill, opening it to reveal a large glass casserole dish with marinated meet inside.

Dean acquiesced and sat down, lifting the sweating beer bottle to his lips as he watched the other man move around the grill with the ease of familiarity. Castiel was definitely an original, at least to Dean who had never witnessed so many contradictions in one person before. The cadence of his speech and the stiffness with which he held himself gave the impression that Castiel was a man ill at ease with himself and others, that maybe his thoughts and feelings were probably as much a mystery to himself as they were to others. And then Dean began to actually _see_ Castiel. The way that he interacted with his niece, the confidence he exuded when inviting Dean and Jesse over for dinner, the absolute clumsy grace with which he walked around his home and yard in leather flip flops and lived in kakis.

"I write graphic novels," Castiel said abruptly, breaking into Dean's thoughts.

"Really?"

Dean was surprised. Maybe if Castiel had told him that he wrote historical novels or political treatise's he'd have nodded knowingly but again the other man had managed to surprise him.

"As in comic books?" he asked, amused and delighted.

Despite the fact that Dean could only see Castiel's profile as he tended to the barbequing meat, the flush that had blossomed over his slightly stubbled cheeks was obvious and endearing.

"They're a little more…meaty than a comic book but essentially, yes."

"Man, that is so cool!"

Dean heard his words a second after they came out of his mouth and it was his turn to blush. Jesus, could he sound anymore like a sixteen year old virgin? Dean cleared his throat.

"What are they about?"

Castiel closed the lid of the barbeque and returned to the table, settling in the chair closest to Dean.

"An angel," he said, sipping on his wineglass with pink lips curved into a slightly self deprecating smile.

Dean nodded, motioning for Castiel to expand, wondering if the other man would notice that he had shifted a little in his chair so that their knees were merely a hairsbreadth apart, almost groaning when Castiel pulled his bottom lip between his perfect teeth.

"The story revolves around an angel named Cassiel-please hold comments until the end, Dean-who has fallen from Heaven and is traveling Earth fighting the forces of evil. During his travels he meets a pair of brothers, hunters who also fight evil supernatural forces, whose destiny it is to play a pivotal role in the impending apocalypse."

Castiel's fingers tapped against the glass of the patio table, drawing Dean's gaze. Great, the man had the only set of sexy fingers known to man, long graceful fingers, slender and smooth making Dean wonder how they would feel wrapped around his cock. It took some effort but Dean managed to drag his gaze away from the sex fingers to try and concentrate on the words Castiel was speaking. Obviously it had been way to long since he'd gotten laid.

"It was an accident really," Castiel continued, "I had never intended to seek out a publisher."

"And yet you are published," Dean said, stating the obvious in an attempt to draw Castiel out, hoping to encourage him to continue his recitation because he was genuinely interested in the story and partly because Castiel could recite a cookbook and Dean would be completely enthralled.

"Yes," Castiel agreed unnecessarily, "due to the intervention of my college roommate Chuck. The novels are actually a joint effort between the two of us; I write the stories and he does the art."

Castiel gestured to Dean's now empty beer. "Would you like another?"

Dean reached to the cooler behind him having seen a few beers in it when Castiel had opened it earlier, pulling out another beer.

"When we were younger, Anna and I, we spent a great deal of time on our own while our parents would be on one international adventure after another. We grew up with ambivalent nannies and housekeepers who kept their heads down and didn't question the fact that the adults were never home. Despite the fact that Anna was two years older than me, she would become frightened when we were alone in the house alone at night, and over time her anxiety would become overwhelming. I began trying to find ways to keep her distracted from her fears, and my own by extension. We would build forts in the formal living room and eat junk food until we got sick. It was successful to a certain extent but there were times when nothing seemed to work. It broke my heart to see my sister in so much distress and I would try everything I could to distract and comfort her but I was just her little brother with no idea how to make our situation less frightening. The only thing that I could think to do during those times was to sit beside her and read to her from the books from my parents library, hoping to give her something else to focus on instead of the fact that our parents gave us everything we could possibly want except for _them_.

After I had gone through all of the books in our house, I began obtaining books from the local library and then I just began making up my own stories. Anna would tell me that she liked those the best and they did seem to help her more often than not so I continued creating stories for her.

Over the years Anna slowly grew out of the panic attacks but insisted that I continue writing, telling me that reading my stories made her happy. When she left to university, I still wrote them for her and the tradition continued after I had also gone off to college. Writing for my sister made me feel close to her no matter how far apart we were and reminded me that no matter what I would never be alone, we would always have each other."

Dean had been watching Castiel closely as he talked, losing himself in the man's recitation of his early years, his close relationship with his sister that so mirrored his own with Sam, wanting to lean in closer and take the other man's hand in his own. Instead, Dean tightened his grip around his beer, suddenly confused about the rising intensity of his feelings towards the dark-haired man sitting so close but not close enough.

"Sorry," Castiel said, looking down at his wine glass, a sheepish smile on his face, "I am certain that those words are the most maudlin words I have ever spoken."

Dean shook his head, moving his knee to nudge the other man, a wide smile on his face.

"No worries, man, my brother has the same affect on me. I've decided that the only way to combat it is to follow it up with an insult. If Sam is suddenly flooded with estrogen and tells me that he loves me, I have to respond so I say 'I love you too, _bitch_'. That way my brother knows he's loved and I still get to keep my balls."

Castiel laughed, humor lighting up the storm tossed blue of his eyes and burrowing straight into Dean's gut, stirring his long neglected libido. How did he have such a sexy voice anyway? It really wasn't fair.

"Anna would probably kick me in the balls if called her a bitch, so I lose either way."

"Then I would strongly advise against it since I have plans for those," Dean replied before his brain was able to stop him and immediately felt the heat rushing to his face probably resulting in a ruddy shade matching the pretty flush running up Castiel's neck.

_Stupid fucking mouth! Jesus Christ…_

Dean cleared his throat desperate to move them both out of the awkward moment he'd created.

"How did your roommate end up getting you published?"

Castiel hesitated for a moment, his eyes slightly glazed over, before answering.

"Oh. Right. Well I had begun to write Cassiel's stories for Anna, complete tripe really, but she swore it was the best thing I had ever worked on and wanted me to continue writing more stories with the three characters. My roommate, Chuck Shurley, had managed to destroy his computer with the help of his ever present flask full of scotch, so I had let him use mine. One weekend I had to visit Anna and while I was gone, Chuck had added some artwork and sent it off to a literary agent he had met at a bar. I, of course, had no idea until I received a telephone call from what I assumed to be a crazy person telling me that he had found an independent publisher interested in my work."

Dean grinned, "I take it that he wasn't as crazy as you thought."

"No. I hung up on him but could not stop wondering about the things he had said. I called Anna to tell her about it and that is when she told me that I needed to talk to Chuck before she then hung up on _me_. Needless to say, my drunken roommate confessed to his perfidy as soon as I questioned him."

"And now you're famous," Dean announced.

Castiel huffed, rising from his chair, moving to check the meat on the grill.

"I would not use the word 'famous'," he said dryly. "The novels have a cult following, a small but….deeply devoted fan base."

"Need any help?" Dean asked as Castiel began removing the ribs from the grill, placing them on a ceramic tray.

Castiel shook his head, shooting Dean a small smile. "No thank you. You and Jesse are our guests, I insist that you just drink your beer and relax."

As Castiel's words fell over him, Dean realized that he _had_ been relaxed and wondered when the last time had been that he had felt so comfortable, especially around someone he had just met. Dean had lost himself in the sensation and failed to notice that Castiel had wandered back into the house until he reappeared carrying another tray filled with corndogs, tater tots and what appeared to be a pasta salad.

"Claire! Jesse! Time to eat!"

The children were at the table and squirming in their seats before Castiel's voice had faded from the atmosphere.

An hour later, Dean found himself laughing as he listened to the children recite their backyard adventures and sneaking glances at Castiel, committing to memory every smile, every word and every clumsy movement of his body. It occurred to him that his fascination for the other man should be a source of discomfort, considering it was as foreign to his personal experience as liquid latex but his anxiety refused to ignite and instead he just continued to revel in what may have been his first experience with happiness in years.


	6. Chapter 6

Title: They're Applauding Us (Part 5/?)  
Author: BloodyEccentrik  
Pairing: Dean/Castiel, Sam/Jo, Anna, Bobby, Ellen, Gabriel  
Rating: PG-13  
Word Count: 1057  
Spoilers: Not a one. Totally AU.  
Summary: Dean has just won custody of his son and moves him back to his hometown of Lawrence to be around his family and ends up meeting author Castiel Novak.  
Disclaimer: I own nothing other than my dog so hopefully no one sues me for being an obsessed fan.

Dean and Jesse arrived home that night just before eleven, neither one actually having wanted to leave the Novak home. After dinner, Claire and Jesse decided that they needed to watch an iCarly marathon, and according to Claire the old people _must_ watch it with them. The kids piled blankets and pillows on the floor, accepting the popcorn Castiel offered with bewildering enthusiasm considering they had just inhaled dinner not more than an hour ago.

Surprisingly enough, Dean did not hate the show, had even found himself mildly amused on more than one occasion but he doubted that his lighthearted mood had as much to do with the show as it did with the fact that, while not exactly cuddling, Castiel had not sat on the opposite end of the couch but in the middle, close enough so that Dean could feel the warmth of his body but not so close that they were cuddling. Which was good because he didn't do cuddling, right? Looking over at Castiel he wondered if maybe he did do cuddling, or at least would consider it if that's what Castiel wanted. But only to make Castiel happy. Or, ya know, whatever.

It didn't take long for Jesse and Claire to pass out as children are wont to do after hours of hard play and corndogs leaving Castiel and Dean relatively alone. For a while the two men chatted, Dean telling Castiel stories about the garage patrons and Castiel making Dean laugh at stories of his collaborator Chuck's drunken declarations of undying love for his roommate during college.

When the laughter had died down, Dean turned to Castiel and rested his hand lightly on Castiel's.

"Thank you for having us, Cas. The move has been…difficult for him," Dean said, a sad smile on his face as he looked over at the sleeping form of his son.

"Coming back to Lawrence was the best thing I could have done but at the same time, Jesse's had to deal with a lot of upheaval in his short life. It's been so amazing seeing him just be a five year old for a few hours."

While Dean talked Castiel had turned his hand, lining up their palms and threading their fingers together, offering Dean comfort that he didn't know he needed.

"So yeah, thanks," Dean said shifting a little under Castiel's intense blue stare.

"There is no need to thank me, Dean, I…" Castiel's words trailed away his eyes lowering to rest of their joined hands.

Dean was about to push the other man to finish his sentence but was interrupted by the sound of a surprisingly loud snore coming from the little strawberry blonde sprawled over the blankets on the floor, and was unable to hold back a quiet chuckle.

"I would like to believe that she inherited that trait from her father but I happen to know that my sister sounds like a broken bull horn when she sleeps."

Castiel and Dean shared another quiet laugh.

"On that note, I think it's time I collect my offspring from the floor and take him home."

Dean reluctantly pulled his hand back, feeling a chill at its absence. Once he had picked up Jesse, Castiel walked them to his front door and Dean found himself once again having missed an opportunity, in the quite moments he should have asked if he could see Castiel again or tried to steal a taste of his lips. Pausing in the doorway, Dean turned to Castiel.

"Can I call you?" he asked quietly not wanting to wake Jesse.

"Yes. Please." Castiel responded, his voice equally quiet and sliding over Dean like dark chocolate and sex.

Now standing inside the Winchester home once again, Dean closed the door softly behind him and securing the locks, before climbing the stairs to Jesse's room. Maybe tonight there would be no nightmares and they could both get some much needed sleep.

Dean woke Jesse up to use the bathroom before making quick work of removing the child's ever present cowboy boots and jeans before herding him into his bed.

"Nigh', Daddy…" Jesse slurred sleepily, his eyes already closing once more.

Dean pressed a kiss against the boys' temple, taking a minute to sweep the light brown hair off his forehead and tracing a finger down his lightly freckled nose.

"Love you, little man."

Reluctantly, Dean left the room after turning on the Buzz Lightyear nightlight and walking across the hall to his own room grateful for the closed door of the master bedroom that indicated Sam and Jo had not been waiting up for him. There was no way he could answer any of what he knew would be invasive questions right now without being a dick.

Entering the bathroom adjoining his room, Dean turned the water as hot as he could stand it and quickly divested himself of his clothes and stepping inside the cubicle.

His intension had been to take a quick shower and have an even quicker wank but instead slumped against the cool tiles and replaying the evening in his head. Or to be more specific he replayed every word that Castiel spoke, every glint in his and quirk of his lips hoping to recall anything that would make him reconsideration the perfection that was Castiel.

Okay, maybe the guy wasn't perfect. After all, he couldn't even extract a wine glass from his own cupboard without nearly knocking himself unconscious. And there was the fact that he was kinda famous. According to Castiel his fanbase was small but still, so far his brother, sister-in-law and babysitter had known who he was and for some reason it put Dean off balance.

Yet there was no denying that from the moment he had laid eyes on Castiel, Dean had felt not only a rush of sexual attraction but an unfamiliar feeling he couldn't even begin to describe other than knowing that he wanted more of it.

The heat of the water began loosen his muscles and the image of Castiel's penetrating stare made his blood surge, flooding his cock and reminding himself of his original intent for utilizing the shower. A small groan slipped past his lips when he palmed the turgid flesh and began to create a fantasy involving the deep blue of Castiel's eyes and his sweet pink lips.


End file.
